Irrigation has started

Yesterday I finally started irrigating the hayfield this year.   I had cut my hayfield earlier, but we had an inch of rain one weekend so I could take my time laying out the irrigation pipes. It took me two days to lay out all the pipes.  I also had some work in the north and middle pastures and it would be easier to do if I could drive my pickup out there.  Laying the north irrigation line would prevent that.

I got my pasture work done for now yesterday afternoon, laid the last four pipes in the north pasture, then around 6 pm I got the irrigation pump started and going.  Before doing that I also spent time and effort to remove water weed in the river near the irrigation intake.  Better to do that now than in a few weeks as the water weed likes to grow and expand.

In the beginning I have the main line and sprinkler lines all uncapped.   For whatever reason stuff gets in the pipes as they are stacked and sitting there over the year.  The water washes the stuff out.  Better that way than have the stuff try to come put the sprinkler heads.  I laid out in the south pasture the extra pipes I had bought this Spring.   As this line sat there over a week, the cattle knocked the pipes over and the sprinkler heads lay on the ground.  It is a spare line so I will fix it / straighten it once the pipes are washed out.  I'll do it differently next time.  Have the sprinklers be standing from the beginning.  Yes, stuff was washed out the end of the line.  But once I stood the sprinklers up I discovered a third of more of them were clogged with debris.  Water and debris can go sideways.

I am now back to waking up early - for me - to move sprinkler lines twice a day.  7 am and 7 pm.   Since I fall asleep easily and need hours of sleep I then go back to sleep after moving the pipes at 7 am.